Sheila Bridges Displays the Things She Loves … in Her Dining Room

When she isn’t at home in Harlem, the interior designer Sheila Bridges can usually be found at a custom 1,600-square-foot barn-shaped house she designed and built for herself in Hudson, N.Y.

Inside, the dining room showcases the furniture, art and accessories she loves. Because she usually eats in the kitchen and entertains guests outdoors, it serves as more of a casual library and gallery than a place for meals.

Ms. Bridges fills her country home with vintage finds, contemporary art and natural objects she finds outdoors.

“Right now, my dining table is covered in coffee table books, including a lot of art books,” which speak to her current interests, said Ms. Bridges, 60. “And I adorn my table with a lot of other personal things.”

Editing the selections has been a challenge since she downsized from her previous country house, because she continues to hold on to family heirlooms and collects everything from vintage furniture to abandoned bird nests she finds outdoors. “It’s a good thing I have a big basement,” Ms. Bridges said with a laugh.